It is often desirable to track an object as it traverses a sequential chain. For example, a consumer product begins as raw materials, which are then transported to a manufacturer that constructs a component of the consumer product using the raw materials. The component may then be transported to another manufacturer who constructs the consumer product using the component. The consumer product may then pass through any number of distributors until it reaches a retailer and, finally, the end consumer.
Because the consumer product, and the components and raw materials that make up the product, generally pass through so many different manufacturers that are often not related, it is difficult to track the product and its components as they travel through a supply chain or other form of sequential chain. It is even more difficult to track materials to which a barcode, RFID, or other tracking mechanism cannot continuously be physically attached as materials transit supply or other forms of chains. However, information related to products, components and raw materials is often desirable to consumers (for example, consumers who may be interested in tracking the origins and other attributes of products they purchase) and to regulators (for example, regulators who may want to ensure that the materials used to make the products are used legally).